Letter to Chris from Dr. Newman

Today Christopher received an e-mail from his PICU doctor while he was a patient at Children’s Hospital, Oakland 17 months ago after falling from a tree and sustaining a severe traumatic brain injury. The letter is so beautiful that I want to share it with all of you…

“Dear Chris, I am so proud of your achievements over the past year. Now I hear from your parents that you have passed or rather aced the sailing course and are a fully-fledged, certified SKIPPER. WAY TO GO MAN!!!!!. When I think of the defenseless young boy in the bed, coming out of your coma (as your Dad assured me you would), going on to Rehab and regaining your strength and thoughts almost faster than I could have dared to hope, I am proud to have had the chance to take care of you. We only provided the time for you to gain strength back and you and your family have done all of the hard work. KOL HAKAVOD, which means, "all of the honour" is due to you and your family. I pray that you will all go from strength to strength and that you will have many such successes. Please do keep me informed of ALL of your achievements, no matter how large or small. I look forward to seeing you and your family soon.
Your oh so PROUD Doc., Viv Newman PICU OAKLAND -- I hope that you might remember me a little.”

Knowing Dr. Newman and having the privilege of calling her friend is one of the blessings that came out of this unexpected traumatic experience and we will be forever grateful to her and the entire staff at Children’s Hospital, Oakland. My next (and very soon to come) blog post will be the most recent update on Christopher's miraculous recovery!